Jake****
The doctor worked tirelessly, but nothing could stop the panic coursing through my veins. I should have been the one to protect her. I should have stopped this before it ever had a chance to start. The sounds of medical equipment filled the air, but they barely registered over the pounding in my head, the gnawing realization that no matter what I did, I was losing her.
"Jake," Belle’s voice was barely a whisper, but it sliced through the chaos in my mind. I leaned closer, brushing the damp strands of hair from her forehead.
“I’m here,” I said, my voice rough, weighed down by everything I couldn’t say. “I’m not going anywhere, Belle. You have to hold on.”
Her eyelids fluttered as she tried to focus on me, her gaze clouded with confusion. "Why... why did you do it?" she asked, h
